“I believe that all who visit Optina Hermitage in their deepest need will find solace, by God's mercy and the prayers of our great fathers, Leonid, Macarius, and Ambrose. They brought up so many souls for the heavenly homeland — and even now, they continue to nourish souls.”
(St Joseph of Optina)
“All my frailties passed to him,” sighed Venerable Ambrose, speaking of his ailing cellmate. “But he is humble… yes.” Not only frailty, but spiritual gifts too, flowed to Father Joseph of Optina from Ambrose, under whose guidance he lived for thirty years. Blessed Pachomius, who served near Optina, would often say, “Father Joseph is just like Ambrose.” He was close to the elder in outward way of life, and even more in spirit, in obedience, in resolve, and in loyalty — the dearly loved child of Father Ambrose. The humble hut of the venerable elder became a true school of piety for Father Joseph. Here he learnt, in deed, the art of arts: the monastic life itself. In time, he too became a guide for monks.
He lived with such deep reverence, and his gentle silence before God was so blissful, that even a fleeting, heavenly smile would draw hearts close to him. No one could fail to love him. The old and wise monks of the skete would say, “This is a true monk — he lets no word fall to the ground.”
For Father Ambrose, Joseph was willing to lay down his very life. Once, a visitor came to the elder’s cell, furious and with a pistol in hand. The brethren froze with fear. But Joseph calmly stepped outside, made the sign of the Cross over the armed man, and looked straight into his eyes. The man suddenly grew weak, dropped his arms, and in that moment someone took the pistol from him. This visitor was possessed — and had come to take Ambrose’s life.
Cell of St Ambrose in the skete of St John the Forerunner
The road of Venerable Joseph — born Ivan Yefimovich Litovkin — towards God began very early. He first saw light in Gorodishche, a hamlet of Starobelsk uyezd, Kharkov province, within a household rich in faith. His father, Yefim Yemelyanovich, was the village head — a man respected by all. His mother, Maria Vasilievna, strict yet fair, taught her six children heartfelt prayer. Generous to the poor, the parents often gave alms in secret from each other. Monks who gathered aid for their monasteries found a warm welcome, and the church never lacked their support. They named their second child Ivan after their dear saint, John the Merciful, and the father often voiced a wish that one offspring might give his life to God.
Ivan turned out gentle beyond his years. Both his father and the parish priest who guided the family would remark, “This boy will come to something special.” When Vanya turned eight, he once changed in the blink of an eye while playing with friends — his face shone, and he looked up, arms reaching for heaven, only to collapse at once, unconscious. Back at home, as he came to, he answered his parents’ worried questions: he had seen the Queen of Heaven. Asked how he knew it was her, he replied, “She wore a crown with a little cross.” “But why did you fall?” the grown-ups pressed. With shy eyes cast down, he softly said, “There was such a sun beside her… I don’t know, I don’t know how to say it!” His words tumbled out, and tears followed.
From that moment, Vanya changed. He grew quiet and thoughtful, held back from games, and a real, warm faith and love for the Mother of God sprang up in his young heart. Not long after, a fire broke out in their village. “Queen of Heaven! Spare our little home — it’s still new!” Vanya cried, his arms high to the sky. His prayer did not go unheard: every house burned but the Litovkins’ was left untouched.
At four, Ivan lost his father — and by eleven, his mother too. Life dealt the orphan heavy blows. He worked at an inn and in a grocer’s shop, hauled sacks weighing a hundred kilos, and took on any hard job he could find. He accompanied trade caravans and often went hungry or roamed without shelter. His master was cruel and would often beat him. Hired by traders, he found himself at times living in rough, godless surroundings. Yet the Lord always shielded His chosen child, and no hardship ever changed his good heart. That harsh, frightening world never drew him into evil or made him bitter.
Optina Hermitage at the end of the 19th century
The thought of the monastic life had not yet crossed his mind; but when at last a good post opened up for him, with the merchant Rafailov in Taganrog, who even hoped to marry him to his daughter, life suddenly took a new turn. An unexpected letter arrived from his elder sister, the nun Leonida. She advised her brother to go to the skete at Optina Hermitage, famed for its wise and experienced elders. From that moment, the desire to leave the world took hold in Ivan’s heart. Following his sister’s counsel, he set off for Optina. On the journey, he met some Belyov nuns who gave him a lift. When they reached their destination and said, “Brother Ivan has come with us,” the monk caring for them, Elder Ambrose, replied, “This Ivan will be of use both to you and to us.” It seemed he saw, even then, the future of the young man, who would later be sought out not only by the monks of Optina, but also by sisters from women’s convents, and by countless laypeople.
On 15 April 1864, Ivan received the rassophore habit. Eight years later, on 16 June 1872, he was tonsured into the mantle with the name Joseph. By 1884, Father Joseph was ordained as hieromonk. By then, he already served as the chief cell attendant to Elder Ambrose. In 1888, Hieromonk Joseph fell gravely ill and was tonsured as a schemamonk. During that sickness — a struggle that, in the end, was not for death but for the glory of God — the Queen of Heaven visited her chosen one again, just as she had in his childhood. “Endure a little longer, My beloved; not much remains,” she comforted him. The novice who looked after Father Joseph heard those gentle words and hurried to peep behind the screen at the infirm monk, but saw no one there. “Father Joseph was lying flat, eyes shut,” he later shared with Elder Ambrose. “I was so frightened that my hair stood on end.” Elder Ambrose told some of his spiritual children that, during that illness, Father Joseph was indeed granted to see the Queen of Heaven.
Visitation of the venerable Joseph by the Queen of Heaven, fresco at Optina Hermitage
After the blessed repose of Elder Ambrose in 1890, the brethren, without any prompting, sought Father Joseph for counsel. He became spiritual guide for the Shamordino sisters, along with Elder Anatoly. When, at the end of 1893, Elder Anatoly was struck down by illness, the duty of spiritual father and the headship of the skete fell to Father Joseph.
St Joseph held together, in rare balance, the firmness needed in a leader with the soul of a true elder. With the brethren, he was steady and demanding; he taught humility, patience, guileless obedience, and all the ways of the monk’s path. Yet, he led not with the force of an official, but with the warmth of a father’s love. As an elder, he soothed, brought calm, and led all those around him towards peace and willing submission.
The brethren would say of him, “What our Father does not achieve by command, he completes with his humility: he will speak, he will look at you in such a way, that though you might not wish to give in, you’ll find yourself yielding.”
Ever self-effacing, Father Joseph credited the fruit of his work to the good spirit of his brethren. He wrote to his sister, Nun Leonida, soon after being made head of the skete: “I guide the skete together with all my helpers — the brethren; everyone listens and humbles themselves. The main thing is to keep watch over oneself and care for one’s own soul, for the brethren — thanks be to God — are all at peace.”
His answers were brief; his counsel spare. Yet two or three words from him could shine more light than the longest talk. His calm seemed to come from heaven itself, and in his presence, even the most restless, stubborn, or troubled hearts would quickly soften.
From his letters to his spiritual children:
✦ God weighs repentance not by effort, but by depth of lowliness (Luke 18:10–14). Some labour hard to gain forgiveness, but the one who bears no grudges goes ahead of them, for the word is true: “Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.” (Luke 6:37; and 1 Corinthians 13:1–8, 13).
✦ If you could only begin to understand what good the soul gains from wrongs done to it, and from all trials, you would surely rejoice, not grieve or complain. Patience through everything and giving thanks to the Lord for it outweigh mercy and fellow-feeling.
✦ Perhaps through this illness, the Lord is building your salvation. When you are ill, sorrow is needed too. So it turns out, your life is not in vain after all. Look within yourself — you will find no good in a single corner; in our heart there is much room for all manner of creeping things — pride, vanity, self-opinion — yet nowhere for the Sweetest Jesus to lay His head. And so He, the Merciful Knower of hearts, does not wish His creation to be lost, though we are sinful. He sends illness and sorrows, and so every Christian soul is cleansed from sin — yet only if one gives thanks to God for pain, truly repents, and patiently accepts the will of God.
✦ Guard your thoughts; deeds follow close behind.
✦ Should you judge others — above all your elders — you head for the pit even without further sin.
✦ No proud one will stand in Heaven.
✦ A zeal that seeks to eradicate all evil becomes a great evil itself.
✦ Conscience is like an alarm. Rise the moment it rings and you will always hear it. Ignore it, telling yourself, “I’ll lie a while,” and soon its call will never wake you.
✦ The strongest force within us is contradiction. We may tackle something hard, if we set our mind to it, but ask us to do something easy, and at once we will lose heart. Yet, obey we must.
✦ The example of our Lord Jesus Christ shows us with what gentleness and patience we ought to bear the failings of others.
✦ Thinking about the soul always brings benefit; it is fitting even during Easter. If perfect joy is missing, it clearly indicates that sins still stand in the way.
✦ Without sharp lessons a person drifts towards pride.
✦ Sometimes, good is tested through evil.
✦ Avoid disputes, for disagreements often escalate into deeper trouble. Great before God is the one who bows to a neighbour in lowliness.
✦ The Lord draws close to all who call upon Him. Look more intently, using the spiritual eyes of faith, towards the Captain of our faith, Jesus Christ. Consider what He endured, though sinless — and then think of ourselves. Yes, the winter of sorrows feels harsh, but what follows winter? The lovely warm spring arrives, bringing the bright May sunshine, birds, butterflies, and flowers — all these gladden the heart, as if everything around whispers: "Forget the winter and its gloom..." Seek, my dear, to surrender to the will of God's loving Providence, which leads each soul by its own path to salvation.
Saint Joseph reposed on 22 May 1911. The Lord granted His faithful servant a blessed and peaceful end. On his deathbed, "his face was aglow with such an unearthly light that all present were struck with awe: peace and deep calm were written upon it." On 16 October 1988, the holy relics of Saint Joseph of Optina were solemnly uncovered. In August 2000, he was glorified by the Jubilee Council of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church for universal veneration. His precious relics, together with those of six other elders, rest in the church-shrine dedicated to the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God. Each day, a moleben is served before the shrine that guards this servant’s remains.
"To the chosen follower of the Mother of God and fervent servant of obedience, the God-wise Elder Joseph of Optina, let us bring hymns of praise, that he may free us from every trouble and guide us on the straight path, as we cry to him in love: Rejoice, O Joseph, beloved and blessed child of the Mother of God."
(Kontakion 1, Akathist to Saint Joseph of Optina)
Material prepared by the team of obitel-minsk.ru
Images from the internet
Sources:
1. The life of Hieroschemamonk Joseph. Moscow: Vvedenskaya Optina Hermitage Press, 1993.
2. Ekaterina (Lebedeva), nun. The Optina Elder Joseph: Life and Writings. Moscow, 1911.
3. Saint Joseph of Optina (pravoslavnaya-biblioteka.ru)
